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More Ohioans than ever have the ability to legally carry a concealed gun.

A third-quarter
report released yesterday by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine shows that 82,186 new permits
were issued this year through Sept. 30 — a record for the state, which has been issuing permits
since April 2004. The total is 17,536 more than in all of 2012.

Between July 1 and Sept. 30, 32,618 licenses were issued, compared with 17,396 issued in the
same period during 2012. That’s an increase of 87.5 percent.

Ohio’s concealed-handgun law allows people with firearms-safety training to apply for a license
through their county sheriff’s department. Since the law went into effect, 425,888 permits have
been awarded.

The record comes as Rep. Terry Johnson’s House Bill 203 will have its fourth hearing and a
possible vote on Tuesday. The McDermott Republican’s bill calls for concealed carry and
self-defense law changes that include a “stand your ground” provision. The provision would
eliminate the requirement to retreat before using deadly force in self-defense as long as the
person is carrying a firearm legally and in a place they are allowed to be in.

Additionally, it includes a reciprocity clause that would require Ohio to recognize
concealed-carry permits from other states, though many have more-lenient policies.

Philip Mulivor, a spokesman with Ohioans for Concealed Carry, said he believes the increase is
just part of a long-term trend of people increasingly exercising their Second Amendment rights.

“A lot of people forget that the right to bear a firearm is an enumerated constitutional right
just as freedom of religion and speech,” he said.

However, the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence finds the increase in permits alarming.

“We think that carrying a concealed weapon puts the public at a greater risk of being subjected
to gun violence. The more guns in public, the more available they are for someone to innocently be
shot,” said Director Amy Pulles.

Alex Felser is a fellow in Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism Statehouse
News Bureau.